Trussed frame for vehicles.



R. H. HASSLER.

mussen FRAME Foa VEHICLES.

APPLICATIDN FILED NOV. 6.1916.

Patented. May 21,1918.

11annum"m1111111 http 11 ROBERT H. HSSLER, 0F INDIANAPUIILIS, INDINA.

"rnussnn raaiun non vianrcitns.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that l[,'lRoBERr H. HAssLEn, a citizen of the United States, residing at Indianapolis, in the county of Marion. and State of Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Trussed Frames for Vehicles, of which the followingr is a specification.

' he object of this invention is to strengthen and stillen the body-panels of automobiles where they are weakened by the usual door openings, to utilize the splash-plate as a part of this accomplishment and in connection therewith make the splash-plate more durable for all purposes and neater in appearance, and to combine the running-board, body-sill and frame with the splash-plate to form a trussed eX- tension of the frame which will support the body-panel directly under rthe door openings.

ll accomplish the above, and other objects which will hereinafter appear, by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in whichp Figure 1 is a view in side elevation of an automobile embodying-'my invention. Fig.

2 is a top plan View of same. Fig. 3 is a vertical section on an enlarged scale, on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2 and Fig. l is a like sec'- tion on the line 4l-4 of Fig.l 2.

Like characters of reference indicate like parts in the several views. y

While ll have shown my invention in connection with a car having a single side door, it is even more applicable to cars with two door openings on a side, because the body panel is thereby additionally weakened.

Referring to the drawings, the bodypanel -5 is of sheet metal, and of usual construction. lts lower edge is bent in and nailed or otherwise fastened to the bodysill 6, usually of wood, which sill .supports a floor 7. The body-panel is bowed or curved outwardly, in the manner shown in Fi .2. 1

The sill 6 is su ported by the channel bars of the main rame 8. These channel bars are usually parallel with each other as shown in Fig. 2, and for afmajor portion of the length of the body are considerably inside of the curved body lines, with the result that the wooden sills and sheet metal panels are overhanging and unsupported by the :traine '8 where the door openings are lceive the superimposed specification ot Letters Patent. Patented Maty 2li., TUT@ application mea november e, me. serial no. matto.

cut through. This causes vibration, and frequent cram-ping and buckling of the side panels atthe doors. This l overcome by forming a support out of the splash-plate 9, which extends vertically from the bodysill 6 lto the running-board 10, and has its upper and lower edges bentat right angles to form Hanges 12 and 13 which are nailed or otherwise fastened to both of said members 6 and'lO. The splash-plate is of sheet metal, bent longitudinally to conformvwith the said bowed shape of the body-panels. 'The inner edge of the running-board 1,0 is curved in like manner to conform with the bowed shape of rthe adjacent body-panel.

The running-board 10 is supported from the mainframe 8, by means of a plurality of hangers '14, having ears at their upper ends through which fastening rivets are passed into the frame. The lower ends of rthe hangers are bent out horizontally to rewhich is rigidly secured by bolts, as shown. The hangers ML serve as the braces or struts of a truss comprising a straight frame member 8 and body sill 6, splash-plate 9 and running-board 10, lall concaved with relation to the straight member 8.

' llt will be noted that the greatest strength of the splash-plate 9, is disposed under the body-sill 6, to support said sill, and that the splash-plate is held absolutely to its given s ape by its flanges 12 and 13 fastened' to the body-sill and running-board. It will also be Vnoted that the upper edge of the vertically" straight body-portion of the splash-plate 9 isV rigidly connected with the frame 8, by being riveted directly thereto at its front end, as shown in Fig.- 3, and by means of the body-sill 6, floor 7 and a block 11, as shown in Fig. 4l, at other places.

This provides a stid and strong truss construction at each strut 14, and, w1th the vertically straight. splash-plate which is bowed longitudinally, together with the correspondingly curved body-sill and running board, the truss principle is additionally applied to the support of the body-panel .where the door openings weaken it.

I form ot my invention as at present advised,

running board p tllll' running-board with the sill, and rigid connecting means between the upper edge of the splash-plate and the frame-member.

f2. The combination with a body-panel, a sill to which the panel is fastened, and a frame member supporting the sill, of a running-board below the body-panel, struthangers from the frame to the runningboard, a longitudinally ,curved and Vertically straight splash-plate connecting the running-board with the sill, an end of said splash-plate being rigidly fastened to Said lframe member, and other portions ofthe splash-plate being connected with -the said frame member by rigid connecting means.

3. The combination with a curved body panel having a door opening, a sill curved to conform with' the curvature of the panel to which sill the panel is fastened, and a frame-member under and supporting the Sill, of a running-board below the bodypanel, diagonal strut-hangers from the frame to the running-board, and a vertical splash-plate from the running-board to the sill curved longitudinally wlth the bodypanel.

il. The combination with a curved panel having a door opening, a s ill curved to conform with the curvature of the panel to which sill the panel is fastened, and a frame member under and supportin the sill, of a running board below the bo y-panel having its inner# edge curved with the body panel, strut-hangers fastened to the frame and supporting the running-board to which -they are fastened, a vertical splash-plate from the running-board tothe sill curved longitudinally with the body-panel, and

,flanges at the top and bottom of the splash- -plate substantially at Vright angles to the latter, through which the plate 1s fastened to the sill and running-board.

In. witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal at Indianapolis, Indiana, this 24th day of Oct., A. D. one thousand lnine hundred and sixteen.

ROBERT H. HASSLER. [La] 

